You answer us with awesome and righteous deeds,
God our Saviour,
the hope of all the ends of the earth
and of the farthest seas,
who formed the mountains by your power,
having armed yourself with strength,
who stilled the roaring of the seas,
the roaring of their waves,
and the turmoil of the nations.
(Psalm 65:5-7)
My beloved spoke and said to me,
“Arise, my darling,
my beautiful one, come with me.
See! The winter is past;
the rains are over and gone.
Flowers appear on the earth;
the season of singing has come…“
(from the Song of Songs)
I was measuring the basement window to make curtains last week when I looked out and saw these little beauties reaching for the light. The snow has barely melted and they have appeared earlier in the year in these mountain parts than I can ever remember. They are still blooming. The first blossoms after a long dark winter feel like love awakening.
In this season of singing a new song I was reminded of Depuis le jour by Charpentier.
Since the day I gave myself
my destiny seems all flower-strewn
I think I’m dreaming under a fairy sky
my soul still intoxicated by your first kiss!
What a beautiful life!
My dream wasn’t a dream!
Oh! I’m so happy!
Love is spreading its wings over me!
In the garden of my heart
sings a new joy!
(translation)
Monserrat Caballé was the master of the pianissimo at altitude.
This Now Place
The fog wraps itself around me
like soft flannel encircling a child who twists to see.
Mystic air muffles the crying crow,
the howling wolf.
Damp cloud strokes my cheek
and covers my brow.
I catch a glimpse of mountainside
floating like a memory of the future in the sky.
Then silence.
Beside secret stream,
as in a dream,
I walk on wood chips,
sainted cedars,
lives laid down
to cradle my steps.
The shoulders of giants hush my footfall.
Between fervent moss clinging to rock
the fountain flows, in unexpected joy
between somewhere and somewhere,
beauty colouring only this place,
this now place,
this here place.
I settle my soul upon Your breast and breathe Your love.
The mountains stand
shoulder to shoulder
like guardian angels around the valley.
Whether I sleep or wake,
whether You hide Yourself
or gently wake me to see Your glory.
I trust You.
You will keep the peace, a perfect peace, for all who trust in You,
for those who dedicate their hearts and minds to You. (Isaiah 26:3)
One of the most frustrating positions in the world to be in can be that of “middle management.” It’s that place where a person feels like they carry responsibility for other people’s actions without enough authority to fix things.
Here is what I am learning: If God has given you an area of responsibility you can trust him to give you authority and provision in that area. We have access in Christ to the very throne of heaven.
If he has not given you authority in this, it is probably not your job. You will lose your peace if you keep striving to do something you were not asked to do. Don’t steal another person’s joy of discovery of the goodness of God by standing in their place.
“Our first place of victory [over fear] is in believing the truth concerning our relationship with God. Paul tells us that, “having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom 5:1). We reject the lie that insists God is our enemy. We come to believe He is our Helper in the healing of our souls!”
-Francis Frangipane
I love my God, but with no love of mine,
for none I have to give;
I love Thee, Lord; but all the love is Thine,
for by Thy life I live.
I am as nothing, and rejoice to be
Emptied and lost, and swallowed up in Thee.
-Jeanne Marie de la Motte-Guyon
How good it is to give thanks to the Eternal
and to praise Your name with song, O Most High;
To speak of Your unfailing love in the morning
and rehearse Your faithfulness as night begins to fall.
How good it is to praise to the sound of strings—lute and harp—
the stirring melodies of the lyre.
Because You, O Eternal One, thrill me with the things You have done,
I will sing with joy in light of Your deeds.
(Psalm 92:1-4)
Wonder blasts the soul – that is, the spiritual – and the skeleton, the body – the material. Wonder interprets life through the eyes of eternity while enjoying the moment, but never lets the moment’s revision exhaust the eternal.
– Ravi Zacharias
I am pleading with the Eternal for this one thing,
my soul’s desire:
To live with Him all of my days—
in the shadow of His temple,
To behold His beauty and ponder His ways
in the company of His people.
His house is my shelter and secret retreat.
It is there I find peace in the midst of storm and turmoil.
Safety sits with me in the hiding place of God.
He will set me on a rock, high above the fray.
God lifts me high above those with thoughts
of death and deceit that call for my life.
I will enter His presence, offering sacrifices and praise.
In His house, I am overcome with joy
As I sing, yes, and play music for the Eternal alone.
(from Psalm 27 The Voice)
Charis: Subject to Change 